Sea, Sail & Surf newsVolvo Ocean Race / Leg 8
Close Call At Skagen
mercredi 29 mai 2002 –
Unfortunately for ASSA ABLOY the Skagen peninsula blocked the direct route to Gothenburg and ASSA ABLOY had to tack at one time to avoid grounding. They decided to wait until the very last moment and tacked at the 10-meter depth line, close to the beach. Eventually they passed the bows of chasing yachts illbruck and Tyco by a few hundred metres. Amer Sports One took advantage of a windshift, decided to take an even higher risk and went closer inshore. This manoeuvre has put the first five yachts within a mile.
Effectively this is a restart at the peninsula of Skagen. Spectators on the water called it an extraordinary match race on the last 300 miles of the Volvo Ocean Race.
The pressure on ASSA ABLOY is immense, as Mark Rudiger wrote : "What a day. Holy cow. You could cut the tension with a knife and I might even resort to a little drinking after this one. Magnus (Olsson) is running around like a cat on hot tin roof trying to make up his mind which way to go. Yesterday when SEB was ahead for a little while, we had to sedate him and lash him in his bunk. Klabbe [Klas Nylof] is keeping his cool, but his eyes show an intensity that is a sure sign of an explosion waiting to go off. The rest of us aren‚t much better." In the close call at Skagen the explosion could have easily gone off.
Just 28 miles behind djuice’s skipper Knut Frostad is praying for another chance like he had in Rio : "Our weather files shows less wind towards Sweden. God, please make it even less. We desperately need a parking lot for the leaders. I promise to pay all my parking tickets if the wind gods please give us a little hand right now. Is this so much to ask for ?"
Volvo Ocean Race Position Report, Day 5, 1600 GMT
PS Yacht Latitude Longitude DTF CMG SMG TFHR DTL DTL-C ETA PO
1 AART 57 43.76N 010 29.16E 47 124 8.6 155 0 0 29/05/02 21:02 49
2 ILBK 57 45.88N 010 28.20E 47 120 8.8 157 0 -1 29/05/02 21:08 56
3 TYCO 57 46.20N 010 27.84E 48 118 8.6 157 1 0 29/05/02 21:12 39
4 NEWS 57 46.80N 010 27.32E 48 118 8.8 156 1 -1 29/05/02 21:15 39
5 AONE 57 47.04N 010 26.76E 49 118 9 161 2 0 29/05/02 21:15 40
6 TSEB 57 50.40N 010 14.64E 56 122 8.7 157 9 0 29/05/02 22:05 29
7 DJCE 58 01.88N 009 44.00E 75 132 8.8 164 28 0 30/05/02 00:11 25
8 ATOO 57 50.96N 007 58.96E 153 101 7.3 246 106 +4 30/05/02 09:15 11
Dans la même rubrique
Volvo Ocean Race / Leg 8 : Back Down
Volvo Ocean Race / Leg 8 : Navigators’ Challenge in the North Sea
Volvo Ocean Race / Leg 8 : Amer Sports One Leads Into The English Channel
Photo : G.Cantini / Sea&See.it
VOLVO OCEAN RACE : Gale force winds for leg eight of the Volvo Ocean Race
